Best Games Like Elden Ring

FromSoftware took a bit of a gamble with Elden Ring. Their Dark Souls series had developed quite the cult following, but there were some out there who were skeptical that the creators could replicate the franchise’s success in an open-world setting. Thankfully, all that skepticism and doubt subsided once the anticipated release hit store shelves. Elden Ring managed to surpass expectations for many, developing its own cult following and standing firm as one of the best titles that FromSoftware has ever created.

It’s a lengthy adventure, and players can spend countless hours exploring the vast reaches of The Lands Between. However, once they have finished the release, the Tarnished might find themselves craving something similar that they can sink their teeth into. Here’s a look at some of the best games with Elden Ring vibes, whether they be open-world style releases, or simply titles that offer players immense challenge and entertainment value.

The Dark Souls Series

Metascore: 89 (Dark Souls 3)

Those who have played Elden Ring but haven’t yet been through the Dark Souls series need to put it at the top of their list. This is perhaps the closest experience to Elden Ring in terms of gameplay and combat, though it’s not nearly as open-world as FromSoftware’s latest offering. That said, the worlds offered in the Dark Souls saga are just as dark, foreboding, and vastly imaginative as some of The Lands Between. Players that enjoy the gritty aesthetic of Elden Ring‘s dungeons, castles, and catacombs, will find themselves right at home.

The Dark Souls series pioneered the formula found in Elden Ring, meaning players will already be familiar with the idea of resting at particular areas to level their character up, as well as the weapons and armor systems found throughout each game. While exploration plays a part, Dark Souls does generally guide players in one direction, especially during their first playthroughs. In terms of boss fights, each game knocks its roster out of the park, delivering fights that are memorable, challenging, and unique. Even Dark Souls 2, the black sheep of the franchise, is worth a playthrough.

The Legend Of Zelda: Breath Of The Wild & Tears Of The Kingdom

Metascore: 96 (Tears Of The Kingdom)

The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild wasn’t responsible for starting the open-world genre, but it helped to redefine it. Nintendo’s epic adventure showcased Hyrule and all of its inhabitants in an entirely expanded way, letting players experience the world of Link and his trials as they see fit. If someone enjoys the freedom of exploring The Lands Between, they will really enjoy making their way through Nintendo’s massive and unrestricted sandbox. Although the combat in The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild isn’t nearly as punishing as what’s found in Elden Ring, it can still be pretty challenging.

Tears of the Kingdom, BOTW‘s sequel, is not too far removed from its predecessor. The game takes place in the same iteration of Hyrule, albeit one that is in the process of rebuilding itself. Although populated with a few settlements, the open-world is still rather desolate. TOTK is generally a harder game than BOTW, although its fusion system encourages players to experiment with all the tools at their disposal.

Shadow Of The Colossus

Metascore: 91 (Remake)

Many of the bosses found in Elden Ring are imposing and a handful stand as towering giants. Those who love the aesthetic and challenge of fighting these super-sized creatures can turn to Shadow of the Colossus after their Elden Ring adventure. It’s pretty linear, with players taking down colossal creatures in a specific order, but the areas and creatures are gritty, much like the foes found in The Lands Between.

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Shadow of the Colossus is much more of a boss gauntlet than an explorative adventure, but players who enjoy learning the ins and outs of combat and striking down towering enemies should enjoy this gem. While Team Ico’s 2005 original is a classic, the 2018 remake is the best entry point for new players as it comes with a notable performance boost, something that is an issue with its PS2-bound predecessor (although the remaster is fine too).

Nioh Series

Metascore: 85 (Nioh 2)

Team Ninja has been enamored with Soulslikes for the last half a decade, and the developer has produced some of the subgenre’s most memorable and hardest games. While Wo Long: Fallen Dynasty is an easy recommendation for fans of Sekiro: Shadows Die Twice, the company’s strongest Soulslikes projects are the Nioh games. Both titles are incredible in their own right, and although they are definitely cut from the same cloth, they do have enough differences for them to stand out on their own.

The original Nioh follows William Adams as he goes on a supernatural-laced adventure through the final few years of Feudal Japan. Despite role-playing as a specific samurai, Nioh provides players with a fair amount of customization options when it comes to weapons and Guardian Spirits. Team Ninja’s Ninja Gaiden background shines through Nioh‘s combat, which is considerably more fast-paced than FromSoftware’s typical outings. The sequel builds on many of its predecessor’s strongest features, while also introducing a player-created character.

Nioh does not offer Elden Ring‘s open-world or fantastic exploration, but they do deliver fantastic action, deep mechanics that have a steep learning curve, and thrilling boss fights that rank among the best in the Soulslike sphere.

Bloodborne

Metascore: 92

Some of the enemies and NPCs found in Elden Ring are a bit grotesque in their appearance. There are some aspects of The Lands Between that are teeming with otherworldly horrors or afflicted with a sickness of sorts. Although it’s unique in its own right, it’s not the first time that FromSoftware has explored visually unsavory things. The horror-infused aspects of Elden Ring are reminiscent of Bloodborne‘s Gothic imagery, another Soulslike release from the developer.

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Bloodborne is a much darker release than Elden Ring, more akin to Dark Souls in its punishing world design. Players will tangle with a wide array of powerful and horrific bosses as they make their way through corrupted areas filled with gorgeous architecture. As great as most of FromSoftware’s non-open-world Soulslike projects are, Bloodborne arguably presents the strongest case for being the developer’s masterpiece. Prioritizing fast-paced and aggressive combat, the game starts strong and never lets up, including a fantastic expansion that is just as much of a must-play as the base content.

The Middle-earth Series

Metascore: 81 (Shadow of War)

Those craving another expansive adventure filled with danger can check out the Middle-earth series. In both Middle-earth: Shadow of Mordor and Shadow of War, players will take control of Talion, a Ranger of Gondor, as he embarks on a quest for revenge. The original release is a great setup for Talion’s journey, but Shadow of War introduced a lot of great open-world mechanics, along with expanding on things like the Nemesis System.

The sequel garnered controversy at launch for its bloated final act, and while this criticism was completely valid, this issue was fixed somewhat after the game’s release. The Middle-earth games are dark at times, gritty, and can be challenging depending on what path a player takes.

Hollow Knight

Metascore: 90

Hollow Knight is solid proof that Indie games can be just as engrossing, challenging, and entertaining as AAA releases. Those looking for a fantastic (and sometimes frustrating) 2D adventure through a dark enemy-filled world should check out this epic from Team Cherry. A sidescrolling release, Hollow Knight makes great use of smooth platforming mechanics and upgrades in a Metroidvania styling, forcing players to explore their surroundings to find new skills and items to progress further into the Hallownest.

There’s a beautiful, haunting, and strife-filled world to be found in Hollow Knight, similar to what players will experience in Elden Ring. Although the combat isn’t as over-the-top thanks to the 2D styling, it’s still incredibly satisfying and quite challenging as players progress.

Dragon’s Dogma: Dark Arisen

Metascore: 81

Released shortly following the original Dark Souls, Dragon’s Dogma garnered a predominantly positive reception. A year later, the project was re-released to include Dark Arisen, a new endgame area that greatly ramped up the difficulty. Outside the opening few hours, the vanilla campaign is not particularly challenging, so this addition helped enhance the title’s hardcore appeal. Similar to Elden Ring, Dragon’s Dogma has a proper open-world that encourages exploration to an extent. That said, the game’s map is on the small side, although it seems bigger than it really is due to limited fast-travel options.

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Dragon’s Dogma has a fantastic class system that allows players to follow a wide range of builds, and the gameplay changes considerably depending on someone’s chosen path. The RPG also nails magic, which is very satisfying to master. Rather than summon players or NPCs, Capcom’s game utilizes pawns, which are user-created A.I. fighters who act as party members. As Dragon’s Dogma 2 looks set for a 2024 debut, this is the perfect time for someone to playthrough the original title.

Ashen

Metascore: 81

An indie attempt at crafting a Soulslike experience, Ashen was A44’s first project, and the company did a great job replicating FromSoftware’s formula. The 2018 game undeniably wears its influence loud and proud, to the point that its combat system feels almost identical to Dark Souls and, by extension, Elden Ring. While not the most original, Ashen‘s gameplay is still a lot of fun.

The RPG’s most eye-catching feature is its art style. Ashen opts for cel-shaded visuals, which are a surprisingly perfect fit for the Soulslike genre. Although nowhere near as open or expansive as Elden Ring, A44’s project takes place in an open-world that presents players with a fair amount of freedom when it comes to exploration. Ashen is more open than most Soulslikes on the market, and it is among the easier games to fit this mold.

Lies Of P

Metascore: 84

Admittedly, Lies of P is a better shout for fans of Bloodborne since the game takes obvious inspiration from that FromSoftware masterpiece, but it is nevertheless a must-play for anyone remotely interested in the Soulslike genre. Using Pinocchio as a launching pad, the 2023 release casts players as a Gothic version of the legendary puppet and cuts them loose in Krat, a city that has seen better days. Once a utopia, the metropolis turned into a hellscape when the puppets that once served humans turned against their masters, spreading widespread suffering across the city’s streets. Deadly puppets are also not the only monsters that Pinocchio has to worry about.

Featuring fast-paced combat and a decent selection of weapons, Lies of P is a lot of fun to play, and it packs a considerable punch as well. The game does not offer the same level of customization or freedom as Elden Ring, opting to aim for quality rather than quantity and quantity; however, there are enough options to give players some wiggle room in how they approach scenarios. The game is also not an open-world, although exploration is possible to an extent.

Ghost Of Tsushima

Metascore: 87 (Director’s Cut)

Elden Ring does an amazing job of making players feel as if it’s them versus the world. Much of their journey is spent hacking and slashing their way through tough enemies and killer bosses, all for the chance to change and influence the lands around them. Ghost of Tsushima feels very much the same, putting players into the shoes of Jin Sakai as he tries his best to rid his world of a threatening presence, to bring peace back to the Island he calls home.

Players are free to help shape what Jin Sakai becomes, walking a thin line between honor and dishonor as he wrestles with his own morals to help keep his people safe. Ghost of Tsushima‘s combat and story elements are top-tier, as is its expansive and engaging world.

Kingdoms Of Amalur

Metascore: 72 (Re-Reckoning)

Although not a massive hit in 2012, Kingdoms of Amalur: Reckoning gained a substantial enough cult following to safeguard its legacy. Eventually, this led to a remaster called Re-Reckoning, which even received its own expansion. Similar to Elden Ring, Amalur is an open-world game that prioritizes combat above everything else. Both games also support a range of build types, allowing players to customize their load-outs.

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Now, it should be said that Amalur‘s hack and slash combat is far less challenging than a Soulslike, and the mechanics have aged somewhat over the last decade. Nevertheless, the gameplay is fast-paced, flashy, and entertaining. Unlike Elden Ring‘s grim dark aesthetic, Amalur‘s world is refreshingly vibrant and colorful.

Prey

Metascore: 84

Gameplay-wise, Prey shares little in common with Elden Ring. Like most of Arkane’s projects, the sci-fi game is played from a first-person angle and combines shooter, stealth, and melee gameplay. In the campaign’s opening hours, combat largely boils down to smacking small gooey creatures with a wrench, a formula that can be off-putting; however, things do open up significantly as the game progresses. Along with some satisfying weapons, players also unlock a few abilities that are generally fun to use.

Prey‘s main crowning achievement is its setting, the Talos 1 space station. A splendidly crafted open-world with a Metroidvania structure, the map is detailed, complex, and unrestricted. Similar to FromSoftware’s projects, Prey does not push its narrative that aggressively and utilizes environmental storytelling.

Lords Of The Fallen

Metascore: 75

Nowadays, 2014’s Lords of the Fallen is difficult to recommend as there are just so many better Soulslikes on the market. Deck13’s game was among the first to attempt to ape FromSoftware’s gameplay style, and while the title got a few things right like its gorgeous visuals, the combat and boss fights did not quite click. Still, if someone does not mind jank, they might find LOTF‘s dark fantasy aesthetic charming.

In 2023, Hexworks produced a sequel/reboot that sought to revive the Lords of the Fallen brand. Outside its title and general genre, the new release has very little in common with its predecessor, and it takes advantage of nearly a decade’s worth of improvements and fine-tuning in the Soulslike sphere. The result is a game that consistently flirts with greatness, although an argument could be made that the launch version falls short of reaching that grade. Still, LOTF is ambitious and genre-pushing, including the incorporation of a novel mechanic that allows players to swap between two planes of existence. While not an open-world like Elden Ring, LOTF‘s map is seamless, large, and stunning. The game also has plenty of loot and build options, so Elden Ring fans can look forward to trying out different weapons and classes.

Monster Hunter: World

Metascore: 90

One of the things that makes Elden Ring entertaining for some is its punishing boss difficulty. Players will find themselves fighting through hordes of enemies just to reach large arenas where they must carefully learn a boss’ attacks and skills to combat them effectively. Those that much prefer the actual boss fights, and not all the fluff in between, should check out Monster Hunter: World. This impressive (and expansive, thanks to DLC content) adventure is a constant battle against massive monsters, giving players a chance to use a variety of weapons and armor to combat their foes.

There is a steep difficulty curve for some weapons, as players will need to learn how to effectively dodge the many attacks thrown at them from a variety of monsters. This is one of the best “boss gauntlet” style games, with some battles taking a long time to complete.

Remnant 2

Metascore: 85

Gunfire’s Remnant: From the Ashes was and still is a breath of fresh air in the Soulslike subgenre. Tempting as it might be to dismiss it as “Dark Souls but now guns,” the game brings enough new ideas to the plate to stand out as its own beast rather than just a long-range version of another property. That said, the 2019 release has a few growing pains that could only be healed by a sequel; fortunately, Remnant 2 accomplishes exactly that. Putting aside some launch issues that hampered the experience, the 2023 entry is superior to its predecessor in nearly every way, to the point that it might become difficult to recommend the original title in the future.

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Now, Remnant 2 is not a carbon copy of Elden Ring, and fans of the latter need to be prepared for a generally dissimilar experience. Naturally, Gunfire’s project prioritizes gunplay over melee combat, although the latter still has a part to play. Rather than a large open-world, Remnant 2 is split into realms that are connected through a hub world, and the areas vary greatly from one another in terms of setting. Each realm comes with its own optional content too, so they are not linear corridors heading toward a boss fight. The campaign is intended to be replayed on higher difficulties, a process supported by the use of procedurally generated technology to provide some changes between playthroughs.

Remnant 2‘s class/archetype system provides a lot of wiggle room when it comes to build variety and customization, and these options feed beautifully into the addictive and satisfying combat. While not out of this world hard on its default level, Remnant 2‘s Nightmare setting will test even the most seasoned of Soulslike players, and that is not even the hardest available option.

The Surge 2

Metascore: 75

Even though most developers add their own twists to the setting, the vast majority of Soulslikes are cut from the same dark fantasy cloth. There is nothing wrong with that, but occasionally, a change of pace is in order, and Deck13’s The Surge‘s sci-fi aesthetic could not be further removed from the Lands Between. While 2017’s original entry is an above-average Soulslike, its strengths are largely enhanced by its 2019 successor, which is overall a more enjoyable and ambitious package.

The Surge 2 envisions a version of Earth that is on its last legs, and humanity’s attempts to turn the tide resulted in a world overrun with robotic enemies. As their created characters, players traverse the sprawling Jericho City in search of a girl named Athena, all the while completing morally ambiguous quests for the various NPCs trying to survive in this unforgiving timeline. The combat sticks close to the standard Soulslike blueprint, although it sets itself apart through a body part targeting mechanic that is tied directly to the loot system.

King’s Field: The Ancient City

Metascore: 60

Long before Demon’s Souls was a thing, FromSoftware unleashed King’s Field onto the world, a hard-as-nails dungeon-crawler that laid the foundation for the developer’s later releases. While never garnering the same accolades as the Souls games, King’s Field and its sequels are minor cult classics in their own right, and they are interesting to revisit from a historical context. All the games are drenched in an intense atmosphere that makes every (slow) step feel crucial. Played from a first-person perspective, King’s Field does a fantastic job of immersing players in its horrifying and nightmarish universes, and FromSoftware’s admired level design is on full display throughout the series.

Now, it should be said that King’s Field was hard to get into when it debuted on the PS1, and decades of technological and mechanical advancements have only lessened its approachability. Consequently, any newcomers looking to try out this series must be prepared for clunky combat, lethargic movement, and a lot of frustration. Still, it is neat to see where FromSoftware started its journey that would eventually lead to Elden Ring. All the games are around the same quality, but King’s Field: The Ancient City gets the nod as it is probably the most complete overall game.

Metascore: 84 (Special Edition)

In the same year that saw FromSoftware solidify Soulslikes with Dark Souls (Yes, Demon’s Souls came first and is incredible, but its spiritual successor really put the concept on the map), Bethesda released Skyrim, arguably the most popular fantasy RPG of all time. Available on every modern system, the game features an expansive and detailed world laced with environmental storytelling and subtle lore drops, and one has to assume games like Elden Ring and Breath of the Wild took at least some inspiration from Skyrim.

While quite story-driven compared to Elden Ring, Bethesda’s RPG is arguably at its best when its main quest is pushed to the side in favor of open-ended exploration. In terms of combat, Skyrim is far removed from Soulslikes, although PC players can install a couple of mods that will bring the action closer to Dark Souls.

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